Francesca raises over £11,000.

Francesca’s London Marathon run was DSMT’s fund-raising event of 2017. Donations and Gift Aid kept coming in and Francesca was delighted to surpass her £10,000 target by a further £2,000.

Thank you to all our supporters. Your sponsorship of Francesca enabled us to increase the number of school scholarships in 2017, helping more disadvantaged girls to benefit from an excellent education.

“Marathon day started out well – the journey to the start was relatively easy and everything seemed well organised, although I was definitely more nervous than I expected. A friend of mine had given me a wise piece of advice – to take a moment for myself before I started to just really take it all in, and I think that’s when the nerves turned to excitement.

The atmosphere amongst the runners at the start line (we were all in big groups based on predicted finished time) was electric, and when the gun went off there was a communal cheer and words of encouragement were flying around! The first few miles were relatively easy – there were crowds cheering and the only thing going through my head was “I’m actually running the London Marathon – this is it!.

I felt good at the halfway point but upon entering around mile 16 I started to flag – far away enough from the start for the initial adrenaline to have worn off, but too far from the finish for it to kick in again. I ran through it, but I have to admit that it was harder than I expected. I thought, naively perhaps, that because I had done the training and put in the hours that the actual running would be relatively straightforward, but that wasn’t the case! Luckily I had all my lovely friends and family stationed along the route, and it was a real uplift to know they were all there.

I found it extremely inspirational looking around and seeing everyone running in their charity vests, and it really made me feel that I was part of something bigger than just a race. Thinking about those who the money raised by the DSMT would help also spurred me on; I wasn’t running for myself but for those who the charity supports.

The feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction when I turned the corner on the last mile to see Buckingham Palace and run the home straight down the Mall was unlike anything I have felt before – it was really something special. When I crossed the finish line I stopped running and felt my legs immediately turn to jelly, but it was definitely worth it – a day to remember forever!”

Thank you to all our supporters. Your sponsorship of Francesca enabled us to increase the number of school scholarships in 2017, helping more disadvantaged girls to benefit from an excellent education.